Don’t know about you, but I definitely don’t have the time (or inclination!) for a full on contouring routine on an everyday basis, but reality is, I want it, need it and love a good contour! It slims and defines your face and makes just about any makeup look more put together.
I’m not hugely in to cream contour on myself and instead, usually opt for a powder contour, I’m a big fan of the Makeup Geek ones*…super pigmented, easy to blend and a little goes a long way! Even though I must own every single brush you can possibly imagine, I just hadn’t been happy with anything I had been using for contouring. It was either taking to long to blend out, depositing too much product on to my skin, or just not applying it the way I wanted it to.
Anyway, I’d seen a few people on YouTube mentioning this particular style of brush for contouring, thought I’d try it (I already had 2 in my brush arsenal that I hadn’t really been using!) and for the last few weeks, my daily contour game has changed for the better and quicker! The brush is question is a large, full fan brush. You’ll be used to seeing the finer fan brushes (like the 129 Luxe Fan Brush from Zoeva*) being used to sweep away eyeshadow fallout or for highlighting, but the larger ones are perfect for contour! The one I had been seeing a few makeup YouTubers/ Gurus using was the Morphe M143 Deluxe Soft Fan Brush* which I already owned and hadn’t really used much so far. I also had the NYX Pro 06 Fan Brush* which is similar, so tried both!
A bit of info for you about each…we’ll start with the Morphe M143…
The Morphe M143 Deluxe Soft Fan Brush* is a thing of beauty, but until now, the only thing I’d been using it for (it’s way to large to apply highlight in my opinion, I like a more precise placement that you only really get will a smaller brush!) was to sweep away excess face powder on the odd occasion I could be bothered to bake. It feels like you get a lot of brush for your money too with this one, Morphe are known for being a pro quality brand at an affordable price point, but I really did think this would cost most than it does!
It’s a natural goat hair (Morphe is a cruelty free brand) large fan shaped brush. It’s not too thin, so it deposits colour and blends away effortlessly but is still a lot flatter than a traditional powder/ bronzer brush, so offers a more precise placement of your contour powder/ bronzer. It is, as the name would suggest, really soft and the brush hairs have a fine, feathery feel on the skin. Blends and builds up product easily, without pressure.
The NYX Pro 06 Fan Brush* not as pretty looking as the Morphe, but is a large, synthetic (cruelty free/ great if you’re vegan) fibre fan brush. Unlike the Morphe equivalent, instead of a fine, feathery feel, this one feels a lot denser and almost velvet like on the skin. It pretty much instantly and effortlessly blends the powder and gives an immediate even application first time. This brush can also be used for liquids and creams.
Although I do like both of these brushes, I have to say that the NYX fan brush, if I had to choose, gets my vote. I’ll continue using both, I might use the Morphe brush for bronzer and NYX for contour or visa versa, but the whole point of trying this style brush in the first place, was to speed up my every day makeup routine and the NYX brush is just instant cheek bones and a bit (albeit marginally) quicker to apply contour in my opinion. I personally prefer the dense, velvety brush head of the NYX for contour in particular. This style contour brush is such a game changer in my personal makeup routine and I’m glad I have them in my life! Get the Morphe M143 Deluxe Soft Fan Brush here* and the NYX Pro 06 Fan Brush here*. Have you tried either? If not, you should!
Lyd X
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I’m now based in Cork, Ireland. Although I do still take select bookings for North Wales/ Cheshire and Dublin (get in touch for more info) and am available to travel country wide…I’m mainly taking makeup bookings for Cork City and surrounding areas.
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